Foam, Spring, or Hybrid? How to Choose the Right Mattress for You

Posted April 18, 2022

Did you know by the time you reach the age of 75, you will have spent around 9,125 days of your life sleeping? Given the enormous amount of time we spend on our mattresses in a lifetime, it’s important to choose a mattress that will best fit our needs.

We know it can get to be overwhelming, trying to figure out if you should go for a softer mattress with multiple comfort layers or perhaps a mattress with a higher firmness level for optimal support. In order to help you pick a mattress, we’ve crafted a simple guide to explain what each mattress type really means and listed out the pros and cons of each type for easy comparison.

Types of Mattresses

Foam Mattress

Foam mattresses are typically made out of several different types of foam, strategically layered to give each mattress a unique firmness and feel. The most popular foam is known as memory foam mattress, this material is typically designed to mold or conform to your body shape providing enhanced support and pressure relief where your body needs it the most.

Pros:

• Soft with high comfort

• Mold to your body

• Provide great motion cancellation

• Extremely quiet

Cons:

• Some types of foam such as memory foam can absorb and retain heat

• Lower-quality foams can break down quickly

Spring Mattress

Spring mattresses are the most traditional type of mattress on the market and get their name from the use of interwoven steel spring coils that provide firm underlying support with a cushioned bouncy feel. The use of different coil structures and top layers gives innerspring mattresses the ability to offer different types of feels to match your preference whether that’s a softer or firmer feel.

Pros:

• A large variety of affordable options

• Offer high support

• Have a bouncier feel to them

Cons:

• Little to no motion isolation/cancellation

• Can be noisy

Hybrid Mattress

Hybrid mattresses are engineered to combine the best qualities of traditional spring coil mattresses and modern foam mattresses to create a unique middle ground of the two styles. You will be able to experience the support and firmness from the spring coils while still getting a certain amount of softness and malleability from the foam material.

Pros:

• Great pressure-point relief

• Cooling features

• High joint and back support

• Isolates motion

• Quieter than spring mattresses

Cons:

• Memory foam can trap heat

• Memory foam feel is not for everyone

• Tend to have a higher price point

Mattresses Comparison

Now that you have a better understanding of the different types of mattresses, here are a few extra factors to consider when selecting your new mattress.

Cost: When it comes to pricing, hybrids tend to be more expensive than foam or spring mattresses that can be found at almost any price point. However, we firmly believe that a good mattress is worth investing in.

Durability: Spring mattresses typically wear down faster than foam which can lead to decreasing comfortability over time. Foam latex mattresses have the longest lifespan, with memory foam as a close second since it tends to be more fragile than latex.

Comfort: There's a reason Tempur-Pedic mattresses were all the rage when they first hit the market. Memory foam and hybrid mattresses will on average provide the highest level of comfort, but foam latex and spring mattresses will have a firmer feel. The style that is considered the most comfortable for you is entirely dependent on your personal preferences.

Absorbency: Spring mattresses are bouncier and less absorbent than foam, which means they have high motion transfer. This can be a problem if you share the bed with a restless sleeper, for maximum motion cancellation, we fully recommend going for a foam base mattress instead.

Temperature: Foam mattresses can get to be warmer than traditional spring however, there are countless foam options out there with modern cooling technology that make foam a great option for hot sleepers.

Sleeping positions: For back and stomach sleepers, a firmer mattress, such as foam, latex, or spring is ideal. For side sleepers, a memory foam or hybrid mattress that will conform to their shape will provide the best comfort.

Recommended Mattresses

Our Pick: Tempur-Pedic Tempur-ProAdapt

Type: Foam

Why We Love It: The Tempur-ProAdapt mattress is created with layers of unique foam materials originally developed by NASA that work together to support your body and relieve pressure. This mattress offers unparalleled motion cancellation and advanced pressure relief to make sure you get a deeper more restful sleep. We selected their medium firm option that offers amazing support to all body types while still providing high plush comfort.

Our Pick: Sealy Golden Elegance - Recommended Honor - Plush

Type: Spring

Why We Love It: If you are looking for a traditional innerspring mattress, then this is an amazing option for you. This plush mattress gives you indulgent pillow-top comfort with added high support to your back, core, shoulders, and hips thanks to Sealy’s advanced innerspring system.

Our Pick: Stearns & Foster Lux Estate Hybrid Collection - Pollock - Luxury Plush

Type: Hybrid

Why We Love It: This Stearns & Foster hybrid mattress merges the comfort and conformity of memory foam with the support of IntelliCoils to create a cozy and supportive mattress firmness. This model comes with a cool-to-the-touch cover for added ventilation and breathability to enhance your overall sleeping experience.

Ready To Purchase?

Now that you have a better idea of what type of mattress you are looking for, we highly recommend trying them out in person before purchasing. Head on over to one of our convenient in-store locations in Charlotte, Salisbury, Morganton, Monroe, Pineville, or Winston-Salem North Carolina.

We carry a wide variety of the best brands such as Stearns & Foster, Tempur-Pedic, and Sealy for you to choose from and offer flexible financing options as well as a price match guarantee on all of our products while you shop. We strive to make your shopping experience simple and stress-free. Start exploring our professionally refined inventory to find your perfect mattress!